Poultry-feeder.



C. L. TAWNEY.

POULTRY FEEDER.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 22, 1912.

1,078,646, Patented N0v.1 8,191'3.

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specif cation of Letters Ratent.

P t nt d Nov-15,1913..-

Application filed January 22, 1912. Serial No. 672,532.

Z10 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CLARK LEROY TAw-NnY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Barberton, in the county of Summit andj State of Ohio, have invented new and useful Improvements in Poultry-Feeders, of which the following is a specification.

thereon, and the object thereof is, broadly speaking, to provide a feed distributor for poultry which can be operated by the fowls themselves and which will distribute the feed over a considerable area so that they will obtain some exercise while in pursuit of their food, thereby accomplishing the two-fold object of feeding them and also inducing a requisite amount of exercise.

More specifically, the invention comprises a feed supply-tank below which is a receiving receptacle provided with laterally-extending "hollow arms into which the feed passes and which are caused to revolve by the poultry stepping or perching ona piv- .view, the invention consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement. of parts constituting the invention to be hereinafter specifically described and .illuse; trated in the accompanying drawings which' form a part hereof wherein is shown the pre ferred embodiment of the invention, but it is to be understood that changes, variations and modification can be resorted to which come within the scope of the claim hereunto appended.

In the drawings in which similar reference numerals indicate like parts in the different figures, Figure 1, is a view in side elevation of a poultry-feeder embodying this invention with portions thereof broken away to more clearly illustrate the construction thereof; Fig. 2, is a central, longitudinal,

sectional View of certain portions of the mechanism employed; Fig. 3, is a view of an agitator employed in the devlce for lnsurlng scribed. c ted lever, the weightof the fowl depressing I.

the continuance of the'feed from the supplytank to the receptacle; and, Fig. 4, is a plan :view of the receptacle.

Referring to the drawings in detail the {reference numeral 1 denotes a feed supplytank provided with an inverted conicallyformed portion '2, and usually provided with "This invention relates to poultry feeders adapted to be operated by the fowls with-. out the necessity of personal attendance {a cover 3. The tank is supported through the medium of four legs 4,5, 6 and 7. Ex-

tending between the legs 4 and 6 is a cros ;.arm 8 and extending between the legs 5 and '7 and at fight-angles to the arm 8 is a similar moss-arm -9. These two arms have cut-away portions at their centers adapted to interlock as shown in Fig. 1. In the intersecting por 't1ons of the cross arms 8 and 9 is a vertical opening in which is mounted a pin 10 the lower end of which is threaded to receive a thumb-nut 11 and also a clamping nut 12 by which the pin 10 is supported in an up periphery 14; for a purpose to be later dc Mounted on the upper face of the roller 13 1s a cup-shaped receptacle 1 5 having in its lower wall a pair of apertures 16 through which held-fast devices may be passed for securing "it to the roller '13. The side wall of the receptacle 15 is preferably cylindrical and adapted to inclo'se the lower discharge end of the conical portion 2 of the feed suppiy-tan k land to contact therewith sufiic-ien-tly snugly to prevent the escape of food. The receptacle 15'is provided with a pluralityof.laterally-projecting hollow arms 17 preferably square in cross-secti n and V with their interiors in open communication with the interior of the receptacle 15. The receptacle 15 is adapted to receive the feed 7 from the tank 1 and in order to insure the continuance of this feed an agitator is employed which comprises a U-shaped member 18 having a laterally-bent portion 19 at the lower end. This U-shaped member is positioned by passing the ends thereof through suitable openings in the lower wall of the receptacle 15 and by securing the lower portion 19 thereof to the under face of. the receptacle by means of solder or other securing medium.

Secured to one of the legs adjacent to the lower end of the tank 1 is a resilient member 20 so held that one end is free to yield or bend horizontally toward or away from the roller 13. Secured to the lower freeend of the resilient member is a flexible member such as a cord'21 which is wrapped one or more times around the concave periphery 14 of the roller 13 andfrom thence is carried over a sheave or grooved pulley 22 and its end is secured to the free end 23 of a vertically-movable lever 24:, the opposite end of which is pivoted at 25, to the leg 4:. This lever is preferably provided with a cutaway portion 26 where it engages theleg and also with a cut-awayportion 27 to receive the leg 6.:

' In operation the tank is supplied with poultry food and the parts being in the position shown in Fig. 1, the end 23 of the lever 24: constitutes a vertically oscillatory perch and as this end 23 pTO]BCtS in a convenient manner the natural instinct of the fowls will be to ali ht upon the end 23 as a perch, in doing which their weight-will depress the end 23 sufliciently to cause a rotation of the roller 13 and the receptacle 15 which is united thereto. It is contemplated that the end 23 of the lever 24 will normally lie about 5 or 6 inches from the ground and r by the time the end 23 has been depressed a suflicient distance to impart a rotary motion to the receptacle, the motion causes the feed in the receptacle to pass outwardly through the arms 17, scattering it broad-cast, which attracts the fowls away from the lever and as their weight is removed from the end of the lever, the latter is returned to its normal position through the medium of the resilient element 20, causing a rapid reverse rotation of the receptacle 15 which thereby produces a second or renewed distribution of a fresh supply of food. It will be thus seen without going farther that at each and every 2 time a fowl alights on the lever 23 the food will be distributed over a large area surrounding the device and at a considerable i distance therefrom so as to cause the fowls said crossbar for holding said'pin in an adjusted position vertically with respect to ;said tank, a roller having a concave outer face pivo-tally mounted on said pin, a re- Eceptacle mounted on said roller iopening in saidtank and capable adjustment with respect to said tank iceptacle provided with a horizontal ra- Zdially-extending discharge tube, a spring seicured to one of said supporting legs, a pulley itending from the free end of said spring around said roller and said pulley and con- Q-nected at its opposite end with the oscillatory end of said lever, whereby when said Tjlever is oscillated said flexible member is Ecause'd to rotate said roller and receptacle to gtube. l r

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set jmy hand in presence of two subscribing wit- ;nesses. V l

CLARK LEROY TAWNEY.

Witnesses:

C. E. HUMPHREY, A. LoMoCLIN'rooK.

Copies-of this patent 'may be obtained for five centsieach, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 0..

to do'mo're or less running or walking for and provided at its median portion with a respectively on the upper and lower facesof below the of vertical.

jthrough the medium of said pin, said re isupported on one of said legs, a lever simi-r ilarly mounted, and a flexible member ex gwidely distribute the feed from said radial 

